With President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. set to deliver his fifth State of the Nation Address (SONA), lawmakers at the House of Representatives expressed that the executive chief has some unfulfilled promises from his previous national address.

In separate interviews after the lower house resumed regular session, Kabataan Partylist Rep. Renee Co and Leyte 4th District Rep. Richard Gomez said it was their belief that Marcos, to some extent, had failed to pull through with his proclamations in 2025.

For her part, Co expressed hope that the President would acknowledge that his administration had failed to meet standards he himself set, particularly when it came to resolving the numerous issues that continue to affect the country throughout his term.

“We hope President Marcos Jr. is honest with the failures of his administration. We can see the failure of his corruption drive, to address the education crisis, to address the economic needs of Filipinos and overall change of policy with the direction that considers the welfare of the Filipino,” she said.

The solon further called on the President to ensure that officials involved in the anomalous scheme that led to the misuse of billions in public funds were held to account, stressing that it was the only way for the country to properly move forward.

Failing Grade

Concerning her mentioned resolution to the fraud that had hampered the country’s progress, Co said that she would give Marcos’ response to the issue a “failing grade.”

“If we can remember, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. called on lawmakers to be ashamed of themselves…were there people that became ashamed?” she said.

“While the struggle of the public continues, the “big fish” have remained free, swimming in public funds as there have been no funding that was returned to be used in services for the public, there have been no officials imprisoned,” she added.

The quote that the solon referenced was during the SONA of the President in 2025, where he famously exposed the corruption scandal to the multibillion peso flood control scandal–a kickback scheme that involved private contractors, officials from the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), and lawmakers themselves.

A year after uttering his remarks, the key figures that have been charged over the issue are former Senator Ramon “Bong” Revilla and Senator Jinggoy Estrada–both of whom are detained at the Quezon City Jail - Male Dormitory–while there are ongoing investigations on other players in the scandal.

Even then, the representative from Kabataan Partylist said that the public and the youth remain disappointed with the developments in the crackdown.

“The public are constantly disappointed, the youth are constantly disappointed, we hope for an honest conversation at this State of the Nation Address,” she said.

Economic and infrastructure issues

Gomez, on the other hand, urged Marcos to focus on matters and projects that were feasible in his final two years of office.

“We know that the big ticket programs are late, what he should look to accomplish is the shortage of classrooms. For the next two years, that’s what he should look to accomplish,” he said.

Aside from infrastructure, the solon said that the President should push for measures that would assist the public with the rising costs of products in the market due to the global price volatility.

While noting that it would be difficult to lower market prices, Gomez said that Marcos could prioritize approving laws that would increase the minimum wage of all workers in the country.

Despite his optimism when it comes to provisions, even Gomez said that there were a lot of promises from the previous SONA that had remained unfulfilled.

“He still has a lot of unfinished promises from his previous SONA, particularly in resolving the corruption in government,” he said.

Marcos delivered his fifth State of the Nation Address (SONA) on Monday, 27 July.